In Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus said, “Come into my kingdom, for when I was hungry you gave me food, when I was thirsty you gave me drink, when I was a stranger you welcomed me.” Then Jesus said, “Whatever you did for the least of my brothers and sisters, so you did for me.”
It has become a tradition for Youth Ministry (both junior high and high school) to serve meatloaf dinners to the approximately 250 guests of the Central Iowa Shelter in Des Moines.
Without the shelter and without help from groups such as ours, many people would have no place to sleep and nothing to eat. Our group will cook and serve the meal at the shelter and they will also share fellowship with the guests of the shelter.
Every Junior High and High School Student should sign up to serve at least one shelter meal each year. By doing this they will learn the great fruits of service to others and it will ultimately prepare them for a great life of discipleship.
Youth and their families provide the meatloaves and cookies or bars for dessert. All parishioners are invited to contribute to this ministry by signing up and donating various food items needed to complete the meal when food drives are held.
We carpool from the parish at 4:30 pm, leaving from the south parking lot. If you are driving yourself, please let Jenni know you plan to come and meet us at the shelter at 5:00.
The shelter address is:
1420 Mulberry Street
Des Moines, IA 50309
Other Things to Keep in Mind
Volunteers will not eat until after all guests are served, sometime after 7 pm. It is recommended that they eat something before they come.
All participants must wear closed toe shoes for safety.
A permission slip is required for all participants. Slips can be printed from the website, under the Documents heading, are usually attached to Youth Ministry emails at the time of the meals, or are available from the Youth Ministers.
Meal events start at 5 pm and usually wrap up around 7:30 pm. The carpools will leave the parish at 4:30 pm and arrive back at the parish around 8 pm.